Sep 13, 2016

--- All deploying units have to make adjustments, but perhaps no unit has had to face and overcome a bigger change in environment than the 109th Transportation Company...Based out of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, the 109th TC, 553rd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 17th Sustainment Brigade, 1st Sustainment Command (Theater),is currently deployed to Kuwait, where this summer's temperatures have topped 129 degrees Fahrenheit... During their time in Alaska, drivers looked out for moose and dealt with blizzards. In Kuwait, drivers watch fcamel crossings and sand storms... Since their deployment began in March, the 109th TC has moved over 14 million pounds of supplies by convoys traveling more than 200,000 miles. Their cargo has included all classes of supply and supported service members in Kuwait and other countries... Along with the heat, 109th TC drivers also face the challenge of driving vehicles like the Army's Heavy Equipment Transporter, which is more than 50 feet long with wide turning radiuses. The HETs are big enough to carry trucks, mine-resistant ambush protected vehicles, and even tanks... With a top speed of just over 40 mph, the HETs are difficult to drive on Kuwaiti freeways where the speed limit is usually 75 mph and lanes aren't marked the same way they are in the United States... (Photo: Pfc. Desmond Jones, a motor transport operator with the 109th Transportation Company, 553rd Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 17th Sustainment Brigade, 1st Sustainment Command -Theater-, ground guides a Heavy Equipment) -- Camp Arifjan, Kuwait - Army.mil, by Staff Sgt. Victor Joecks - September 9, 2016